A World I Know
by Bourgeois Babe
Summary: A story based three years after the defeat of Sin. Chapter Five Up: Last chapter! More is explained: Quadrant and the ball. Dang men and their overpowering strength over us...how they like to trick us...well read and find out what I mean.
1. Chapter One

A World I Know 

Chapter One: On Our Way

By: The Bourgeois Babe

Yunie will be thrilled when she sees it: thousands of lights illuminating the busy streets, machina everywhere, and maybe…just maybe, her beloved Tidus.

It had been three years. The seven of us had gone our separate ways. Khimari headed out to Mount Gagazet to teach the Ronso children their culture. Lulu had returned to Besaid to bring up her child. Yuna had gone on a personal journey. Wakka was in Zanarkand helping with the Zanarkand Restoration Project. I was teaching the ways of the Al Bhed and how to use machina. Auron and Tidus…well, everyone knew what happened to them.

Zanarkand was being rebuilt and only days remained until it was complete. Wakka had organized for the first Blitzball game in one thousand years at Zanarkand Stadium was to be the Besaid Aurochs at the Zanarkand Flashes.

After this morning, I was to board my father's airship and head out to Zanarkand for the opening festival. Almost all of Spira was to be there.

Thinking of my plans made me think about my comrades. Thinking of my comrades made me think about Wakka. Dear, sweet Wakka. Sure, I'd had crushes before. Many, really. But never before had I been in love except this man. The man with the red flaming hair and tall posture. The man with the accent I loved and the honesty I admired. I was in love with Wakka, and I thought being away from him would help, but it didn't. Not one bit. He was too old for me, though. He was 25 and I was 18. Legally, I could be with him, but legality was a different story with my father. Not just age held us back, but the mere fact that he used to be a Yevonite. I would see him in a few hours when I reached Zanarkand. Fear crept over me as I thought of what I might be stupid enough to say to him.

The night turned into day. The sun rose over Kilika, making the water glow with a yellow warmth. Palm trees lined the small, bayside town.

"Your wake-up call, miss," a peppy voice called from the other side of my hotel room door.

"Yeah, thanks," I groaned groggily. After turning over from the blinding sunlight, I clumsily tumbled off of my bed, landing on the floor with a loud clunk. A moan escaped my lips. "Owww…"

The spinning of propellers in the distance came to my ears.

"Dad," I whispered. "Dad!" Escitedly I grabbed my luggage and practically crashed through my door. After tripping down the stairs, I regained my balance and walked outside, seeing the large airship docked at the beach.

My walk proceeded to a dash as I made my way to the airship. After going inside the doors, I saw the entry bustling with people hitching a ride to Zanarkand for the festival.

"Rikku!" my father's voice called. Brother, Ranna, Bakku, and my father were standing near the doors, getting ready to close them.

"Dad!" I called back, running and giving him a hug.

"Nice to see ya," he said.

"Yeah, right back at ya."

"Ed'c hela du caa oui," Brother said. {It's nice to see you}.

"Oui cdemm muug payidevim," Bakku stated. {You still look beautiful.}

"Bakku!" Ranna said, poking her boyfriend in the chest. 

After laughing, he said, "Zicd gettehk!" {Just kidding} He gave a wink in my direction, making me chuckle.

"Gate closin'!" Dad exclaimed, pulling the cord that shut the large, steel door. "Okay, we'd better get going to the cockpit. Join us there after catching up, huh?" he told me, making his way to the stairs.

The airship suddenly revved up and lifted from the ground. A sigh came from the crowd and the rumble of speech proceeded.

"So, yeah, guys! We have to really crack down on Wakka and Bakku. They're the ones that will really give us some trouble offensively. Ced, you even listenin'? We have a game in two days and you're screwin' 'round! Oy!" a deep female voice commanded. I looked in that direction to see a Blitzball team standing in their own corner, the other people far away from them. There was one girl, quite pretty with blonde hair and blue and green eyes. The other four were guys. The two black haired ones were tall and muscular, towering over the girl by about a foot. The brown haired one was sitting down, an elbow on his knee. The most handsome, though, was bouncing a Blitzball on his head. His deep burgundy hair didn't even move as the light blue and white ball touched down on his head. Each person was wearing a variation of the same uniform: a pair of blue shorts, blue and white all-star converses, yellow socks, yellow tank tops, and yellow and blue bandanas. 

The redhead accidentally hit the ball too hard and it flew in my direction. I stared at the ball dumbly.

"Hey, could you get that?" he asked, his deep voice mesmerizing.

"Yeah."

I picked it up and threw it to him, sending him back a few steps. 

"Woah, quite the arm!" exclaimed the brunette.

"Oh, thanks," I replied.

"You're Rikku, right? Yeah, I've heard a lot about you! You defeated Sin two years ago, right?" one of the black haired boys said.

"Yeah, that's me!" I stated confidently. I liked that people knew who I was.

"I'm Elly," the blonde said.

"I'm Nick," the black-haired boy said. 

"And Jerry," the other stated.

"I'm JC," the brunette announced.

"And star player of the Zanarkand Flashes, Cedric! But, you can call me Ced!" the handsome one said. A little cocky, he was.

"You're on your way to Zanarkand, then?" I asked, approaching them. 

"Yup! You going, too? Oh, I bet you're on the Auroch's team, huh?" JC asked.

"No, I'm not on the team, but I am headed to Zanarkand."

"Great!" Ced said.

"Rikku!" a strange accented man called. I jetted behind me to see Wakka at the top of the stairs.

"Wakka?!" I shouted, running towards him, falling into his arms for a hug.

"It's great to see you, ya?" he stated.

"Yeah, wonderful! What, it's been two years?" I asked.

He hadn't changed that much. He was still the strange accented, wacky haired, tall, ripped man I knew. All that had changed were his clothes. He now wore blue shorts, green shoes, a green vest, and his trusty blue bandana.

Compulsively, I went in to kiss him, but leaned back out of the embrace before I could. Cred! Shit! Almost kissed him! Bad Rikku! Man, now I'm cursing in two languages!

"You look…great, ya?"

"Thanks, you too, Wakka," I replied. "So, what are you doing here? I thought you were still in Zanarkand."

"Well, I was, ya? But then I heard that you…ahem…and Yuna were coming in on the same ship so I came with Cid to accompany you…ahem…and Yuna, ya?

"Yunie's here?!"

"Yeah. Do you want to see-," he started. 

"C'mon! Take me to her!" I shouted. I tugged on his hand, pulling him a little ways.

"Okay, okay."

He showed my down two corridors to the small engine room. We went inside. Usually only the Al Bhed Psyches stayed in here, but today it was reserved for two…er…three very special people.

Yunie looked up from baby Auran and saw me. "Rikku! Oh my goodness, you've changed!" She embraced me and stood back.

She was still in the disguise I gave her: the 'hot pants', the tank top, the black lace up boots… She resembled what I used to look like. I became more modest because of the men I worked with for a while. There were rumors flying around that not even I wanted to hear.

So, now I wore loose black jeans, a tight fitting black tank top, black boots, and a belt that held all of my machina tools. My hair had grown out a little so I usually put it in a red bandana and let it off to one side.

Lulu sat quietly as she fed her baby. "Hey Lulu!" I said.

"Nice to see you," she said calmly. I always wanted to be like her, that's why I started dressing in black.

"Oh, baby Auran is soooo cute, you know?" I asked Wakka. 

"Yeah, I guess, ya?"

I was still overjoyed that Lulu's child wasn't Wakka's. The baby, unexpected to everyone, was Auron's. It all made sense because Lulu was pregnant shortly after the pilgrimage ended. Baby Auran even looked like her father: Raven black hair, black eyes…

"She is, isn't she?" Lulu said. "Takes after her father."

A long, awkward silence came. I broke it by saying, "We should be in Zanarkand soon, don't you think?"

"Yeah, probably. It's not that far by airship," Yuna said.

Yuna had told me about what happened while she was on her journey in a letter. She had gone to the farplane to see Tidus. But, strangely enough, he wasn't there when she called out to him. This made her somewhat happy. Maybe the sphere was right. Maybe Tidus was still alive.

{This is for all of you who haven't seen Final Fantasy X: Another Story.} A year ago I dug up this sphere during one of my student excavations. When I watched it, I saw Tidus on it, still alive. I showed it to Yunie in Besaid. That's when she started her journey. She was taking a break to come to the opening festival with the lot of us.

"Rikku, I need to speak with you, ya?" Wakka stated, pulling me outside and closing the door.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Well… Listen, Rik. Try not to give away the surprise, ya?"

"What surprise?"

"You don't know? Okay, well, I was giving it some thorough thought and I came to the conclusion on how to bring Auron and Tidus back."

"Oooo! How?"

"If everyone in Zanarkand thinks about them at the same time, hears about them or something, then we should be able to bring them back, ya? They lived on people believing, ya? Well, if we all believe they're back, they could be…"

"That's a great theory…that's why you started rebuilding Zanarkand?"

"Precisely."

"When did you get this smart?" I joked, nudging him in the stomach.

"Maybe I always was and you didn't realize, ya?"

"Could've been."

"Rikku and Wakka having moment. Khimari leave."

"Huh?" Wakka and I said in unison. Khimari had walked in, thinking something…else was going on.

"No, no, Khimari, wait! We were just talking, you know?"

"Okay. Whatever Rikku says," Khimari stated, walking back in. He hadn't changed a bit.

"Let's go inside, ya? We should introduce you to Lu's girl," Wakka said.

Was that actually a 'moment'? Man, was I blind.


	2. Chapter Two

A World I Know

Chapter Two: Blitzball Gamblers

By: The Bourgeois Babe

It was twilight as we flew over Zanarkand. I, personally, wanted to see the sight. I was too preoccupied with trying to save Yunie my last spin around that I couldn't even take in the wondrous sunset. This would be different, and my heart was set on seeing it from up above.

"Hey, the view of Zanarkand is real great right now, ya? Why don't the all of us go down and see it?" Wakka proposed. Did Wakka read my mind, or what?

"I don't want to leave Auran here. She's asleep," Lulu stated.

"I'm not feeling too well right now, I think I'll stay back, too," Yuna said.

"Khimari not leave Yuna's side."

"I guess it's just you and me, huh, Wakka?" 

He nodded. 

As we neared the stairs, Wakka compulsively said, "Hey, let's race, ya?"

"Now?"

"Yeah. On your marks, get set, GO!"

We rocketed up the stairs, turning the corner to the next flight.

"You're gunna loose, you know!" I shouted.

"No way, ya!"

Almost there…

We finally reached the windows on the top floor. I slapped the railing first, though, proclaiming myself the winner.

"Oh, you won! How did that happen?" joked Wakka.

"Oh my gosh! Look at that!" I interrupted, pointing to the newly constructed Zanarkand.

"Nice, ya?"

"Gosh! It's just like that thing we saw while in Guado Salam at Seymour's place! It's just like Zanarkand! Wow! Look at the stadium! It's all lit up and everything! You're the greatest architect ever, Wakka!"

"And see those statues out in front?"

"Yeah. Hey! You sly thing! It's Tidus…and you? Wakka!" 

"Hey, my statue wasn't my idea. It was Berrik's."

"Berrik… That statue doesn't do justice, Wak," I blurted.

"Really? I thought it looked too-"

"Wakka, that was a compliment."

"Oh…I still think that it is too-"

At that moment, I gave up trying to give Wakka any compliments without him saying anything about it.

"Look! The streets…the lights…the bay! Goodness, Wakka! Tidus will have to come back! I'm sure he'll turn up!"

"He'll have to, ya?"

"Wakka?" Berrik's voice came.

Wakka and I turned from the window and to the stairwell. Berrik stumbled up the stairs, one hand clutching his stomach.

"Oh, are you okay?" I asked.

"No! I think I ate something bad…" he started, then his cheeks bulged. 

"Get to the bathroom!" I yelled.

He ran down the stairs, then a most unpleasant sound filled my ears. He was throwing up. Not just a little, but a whole lot.

"Oh, man!" Wakka put a hand on his head.

"What? Are you feeling sick, too?" I asked. That wouldn't be half bad. I could be nurse Rikku!

"No. It's just…how can we win against those stuck-up Flashes when our second captain is sick?"

"Well…" I remembered the comment one of the Flashes had said, "_Great arm_!"

"What? Do you know someone who could replace him?"

"I've played a game before…and I'm great in water!" I proclaimed. "You could refresh my memories on the pointers of the game!. We have until tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah…I guess so, but… I don't know. What if you don't get a hang of it? What if you-,"

"Trust me, Wakka. But if I play, I want something in return."

"Like what?"

"I don't know. You'll think of something."

"Good luck, Wakka! You'll need it!" Berrik shouted, then ran out the door.

"Ok, it's a deal, ya?"

He put a hand out and I shook it. "Deal."

"Okay, boys, Rikku's joining our team, so treat her nice, ya?" Wakka announced to his team.

"_Her_? What can _she_ do for us?" asked Yuma Guado. 

"Hey! Don't put her down! She may be beautiful, but she's real fiery!" Bakku stated.

Ranna elbowed her boyfriend again.

"Sorry. I was just kidding…"

"Ok, boys! We meet here first thing in the morning! We're the first on the field, so get some sleep, ya?" Wakka directed. "On three!"

"One…two…GO, AUROCHS GO! BREAK!"

The three other team members broke away, leaving the locker room. Wakka sat on the bench, looking down at his toes.

"You okay, Wakka?" I asked.

"Oh, Rik. Your uniform is in locker number 7, go ahead. Make sure you bring a ball. I'll be outside the stadium."

"Alright."

He got up and left. I walked over to the wall of blue lockers, all in a futuristic look. Each locker from one to five had a name plate on it. "Wakka," was one. "Bakku," was two. "Ranna," was three. "Yuma Guado," was four. "Berrik," was five. "Zalitz," was sixth. On the seventh locker was a piece of tape that Wakka had written, "Rikku," on. 

After opening the unlocked door, a little light came on, surprising me. Inside was my uniform. Blue shorts, red shirt, red shoes, blue socks, blue and red goggles, and a blue bandana. It resembled Wakka's, and I knew that no other Auroch had that same bandana but Wakka. Was that a special gesture? I was looking too far into it.

After changing, I looked into the mirror. Wow, had I changed. I actually looked like a Blitzer. But I was missing something…

I grabbed a Blitzball from the bin, putting it under my right arm and looking in the mirror.

"Now featuring…Rikku of the Besaid Aurochs!…ahhh! Ahhh!"

I giggled. Better get out for my lesson.

Dashing, I made my way through the maze of concrete and to the outside gate. In a large, vehicle-looking contraption, Wakka was content. He opened a door and let me in, explaining that the name of this machine was a machina car, a vehicle with four wheels that ran on combustion machina parts, all made by himself.

"You've become quite the expert with machina, haven't you, Wakka?"

"Yeah. I practiced a lot, ya?"

He drove off to the beach of Zanarkand. I had heard from Auron that the beach was the best part of Zanarkand, and I was eager to see it.

Leaping out of the car, my feet dug into the hot sand. I dashed through the sand and dipped into the surf. 

"Ahhh! Cold!" I joked.

"Really?" Wakka asked. He was timid to go in. I crept behind him and pushed the lug into the water. He screamed at first, but then landed in that water, laughing.

"Rik! You!" he laughed. He pulled me in by the waist, his strong arms over powering my weak legs. 

"No! No! Ahh! Wakka!" I pleaded. He picked me up and began to carry me out into the ocean.

"You can't just drop me!" I said.

"Oh, yeah I can."

He did right then. His arms gave way and I began to plummet to the ground. After letting out a hearty laugh, he caught me before I hit. 

"Wakka!" I scolded, the anger turning into humor. I began to laugh.

"C'mon, let's practice, ya?" Wakka proposed.

"Sure."

He picked up the ball from the water and spun it on his fingers.

"Let's see what you can do, ya?" he said, winding up to throw the ball to me.

The ball let loose, coming three feet to the right of me. I put a hand out and caught it.

"Good reflexes. Now toss it to me."

Without hesitation, I tossed the ball as said. My arm was stronger than I took it for, and the ball hit Wakka in the stomach. 

He began to laugh. "With an arm like that, I'm not surprised you don't have a boyfriend, ya?" he joked.

What? How dare he say that? I hid my anger.

"What, you didn't think that was funny? Okay, let's keep going."

"Cred!" Wakka cursed. My cursing in Al Bhed led to his cursing in Al Bhed.

"Haha! Another point for Rikku…let's see…the score is twelve to one, I think it's apparent I've won!"

"Impossible!"

"Let's get back, it's getting dark."

"Alright."

We left the cooling ocean and found ourselves back in the car. Wakka turned the key in the ignition. It started up and died. Cred…

"I guess we're walking to the hotel, ya?" 


	3. Chapter Three

A World I know

Chapter Three: Opening Day

By: The Bourgeois Babe

From the balcony I could see all of Zanarkand. The hotel was next to the stadium on the south side of the city. The tides to the North were blue in the reflection of the bright morning sky. The tranquility was suddenly taken away as a serge of excitement entered my bones. Today was the celebration of the opening of Zanarkand!

Quickly, I showered and dressed, applying my make up nicely and applying my own special touches to the Blitzball uniform. On each wrist I placed a wristband, one red one blue. On my arm, I examined the tattoo I had gotten after I started my teaching career. It was blue and white, designed in a circle the stretched out like the horizon all the way around my arm.

"Time to Blitz, baby!" I joked into the mirror.

I dashed out of the room, shutting the door behind me. I began to run down the hall, warming up for my daily two-mile run. 

"Hey, watch it, ya?" joked Wakka as I ran past him.

"You!"

"Where are you going?" he called.

"On a run around the town. You should, too!"

"Okay," he replied spontaneously.

He ran right behind me as we made our way down the stairs, through the reception area, and into the already busy streets.

Wakka was already dressed like I was. At first we only dashed, but then our dash turned to running. Wakka began to get winded as we made it to the third mile, but we decided to go straight to the stadium instead of finishing the last two.

When we finally made it to the Auroch's locker room, no one had shown up.

"They should be here. Practice is at one o'clock," I stated, looking to the clock.

"Yeah."

Wakka sat down on the bench and looked to his toes. I leaned against the set of lockers and absentmindedly tapped my feet.

What could those Aurochs be up to? They could be out getting something to eat. Or maybe they're still asleep in the hotel. Maybe they haven't shown for a reason.

"Is there anything that the other Aurochs said they needed to do before this? Like…getting a bite to eat, you know?"

"No, I don't think so." He was simple in actions and in words whenever he talked.

Suddenly a sneeze came from where the air-conditioning vent was placed. A scuttle and incomprehensible banter followed.

I climbed up onto the open locker and tried to see inside the vent shaft. Bakku's and Ranna's faces stared back at me. Their faces seemed frightened at the sight of me.

"What are you guys doing!?" I yelled, banging on the shaft with my fist. 

"Oh…uhh…" Ranna muttered, trying to think of an excuse.

"See, beautiful and feisty. I like that kind of girl," Bakku said, receiving a double fisted punch in the arm from Ranna.

"Okay, okay! Stop doing that!" shouted Bakku.

"You two, get down to practice and gather the other Aurochs," I commanded.

"Okay, Rikku, right away."

The figures scuttled back through the shaft.

"Those little…Ugg…what were they doing, anyway?" I mumbled to myself, jumping down from the lockers.

Wakka laughed. "Their uniforms are all dirty now. Those shafts were the first things installed in the building and haven't been dusted for over a year," said he. 

I laughed. "At least we'll catch them."

The doors swung open and in came the other Aurochs, sulking. Each was covered head to toe with dust.

"What were you in there for?" I interrogated.

Each remained silent. It ate at me. I wanted to know exactly why they were spying on us.

"Let's just get to warming up, ya? We have the game in less than an hour. You four, go change into your back-up uniforms. Rikku, give the good-luck speech to the Flashes. I'm going to go check if all of the preparations are done."

"Good-luck speech?"

"Yeah, whenever we start a tournament, the Aurochs always give the team they'll have the most trouble with a good wishing. It's a way to keep us from getting big heads, ya?" 

"Alright."

I waved good-bye and exited our locker room. Only a few steps separated the Aurochs' locker room and the Flashes'.

In attempt to be polite, I knocked on the door first. Elly's voice boomed from inside, "Who is it?"

"It's me, Rikku!" I called back.

The door opened and she was revealed. "Hey! How's it goin'? C'mon, come inside!"

I entered behind her and looked at my surroundings. It was almost identical to the Aurochs' locker room. One wall had lockers from top to bottom but in a green and blue hue. The other three walls were painted blue instead of red and the right wall had the Flashes' official symbol instead of the Aurochs'. Ced was bouncing the ball on his head as JC and a female with brown hair went over strategy at the large board at the wall. Every time they touched it, it made a different color. I was impressed. Jerry and Nick were sitting on the bench, Jerry spotting Nick as he lifted a bar with fifty-five pounds on each end. Elly was trying to get them to stop, because every twenty lifts, they'd add another five pounds. 

"On behalf of…" I began, getting each member's attention. "The Besaid Aurochs, we wish you good-luck in the tournament today."

"Aurochs?"

"You play for them?" Nick asked, putting the bar up on the stand and looking to me.

"I didn't know that," commented Jerry. 

"I just got on the team for this game. The front right is sick today."

"Ah," Elly said. 

"Well, tell your grand master Wakka that he can take those 'good-luck' wishes and stuff them in a bag," said Ced.

Suddenly, anger filled me. I wanted to strangle that pompous redhead.

"Well, I'm not surprised that you'd join a team like that," Nick said.

"Why is that?" I asked, placing my hands on my hips.

"Because you're a total air-head? Yeah, you heard me. Any Auroch has an IQ of about…forty." The whole room filled with laughter. Elly wasn't laughing at all.

I smashed through the door and stormed down the hallway to the Auroch's locker room."

"Those Flashes!" I yelled. "I hate them, you know?"

Wakka came out of the back of the huge planning board and looked at me, stricken with surprise.

"You alright, Rik?"

"They called us dumb! They told me that you…"

"Hey, quiet. They don't know how to play fair. They're just trying to fluster you, that's all, ya? So, don't sweat it."

"But, Wakkers!"

"But nothing! Keep it out of your head and head for the showers. We have a big tourney ahead, ya?"

"Alright," I gave in. With my head bowed, I headed to the shower room. 

"Hey!" Wakka called.

"Yeah?" I asked, pivoting on my heel.

"Chin up, kid."

"Okay." _KID_!? That's what I was to him? A _KID_? I tried to smile at him, but all that came out was a funny-looking face.

"Alright, boys, let's go and show those Flashes who knows more about Blitzing!" Bakku said, putting a hand into our huddle. We were still a little tired from the two games we had just played against the Goers and Phyches, but we were in for a bigger game in a few minutes.

"Let's make our people proud!" Ranna shouted, placing her hand on his.

"Let's go get 'em!" said Yuma Guado, putting his hand in.

"That's the spirit!" Wakka said, placing his hand on Yuma's.

"This is for Luca!" Zalitz said, adding his hand.

"Yeah!" I said, putting the final hand on the bunch.

"Aurochs on three…one two three!" Wakka directed.

"GO, AUROCHS, GO!"

We left the locker room all hyped up. Through the cement walkway, we found ourselves infront of a huge bowl that was being filled with water. The crowd was blurred behind it.

"And here they are, winners of the Ruby cups and Crystal cups twelve times in a row…the Besaid Aurochs!" Yuna announced.

Through the dark sky, lights lit up our place.

Wakka waved to the applauding crowd.

"Let's go, guys," Wakka said, jumping on a steel ladder infront of us and heading up to the top of the bowl.

The five of us tagged behind. Yuna's voice boomed through the stdium once more.

"And introducing…the home team…the Zanarkand Flashes!" The crowd applauded more than when we came out, but I didn't let it phase me.

We finally reached the ring that was floating outside of the bowl. I did as Wakka was doing: meditating in the ring of water.

Suddenly, the lights were shone on us, and the places we sat were taking out to the middle of the bowl like before. I stood up on the levitating platform and the crowd went wild as I waved. Leaping into the water, my body twisted until I reached the surface. 

Five other bursts into the water followed. Another six came through, and we knew the game was to start soon. We took our sides as Wakka and Cedric took the first two posts that were inside the water.

The foghorn blew and the ball fell. Wakka retrieved it before the opposition could. He dribbled through the water, being stopped by Jerry and Nick. Bakku and I weren't too far behind Wakka. Jerry attacked Wakka with a kick to the chest. It wasn't enough to take the ball. Nick attacked with the arm this time and retrieved the ball. Bakku and I stopped him.

Bakku attacked first, but didn't get the ball. Nick quickly passed the ball to his teammate, Elly. I was able to get a hand on it, but I couldn't steal it. Zalitz and Ranna blocked Elly as she neared our goal post. After taking two of the hits from the strong defensmen, she started her shot. She spun the ball so quickly in the water that it stayed in the same place without falling. She reached back and hit the ball with her fist. Yuma Guado got it before they could score, Elly cursing herself. 

Yuma passed it to Zalitz, who passed it to Wakka. Wakka was way down at the other side of the bowl and fumbled it. Thankfully, Bakku caught it before the Flashes could.

I glanced up to the clock. Only a minute remained until halftime, and there still was no score on the board.

Bakku got it over to the goal and was stopped by all five other Flashes. Cedric, Elly, Nick, Jerry, and JC all were blocking the goal. 

Bakku took the first two hits, but Nick was able to get the ball. He swam through the water twice as fast as anyone in the bowl could. I was able to face him. I tried a sleep attack on him, and it worked. I had the ball in my possession. After taking a joint hit for JC and Elly, I dropped the ball. Jerry got it and threw it at the sleeping Nick, who tweaked out a little then woke. 

The horn that sounded when the half was over blared through the stadium. We began to swim to the exits. 

Suddenly, a voice filled my ears. "Not so fast."

All of us must have heard it, because the whole crowd and all of the players stopped. 

"Monsters of the farplane, come and meet the ones that took your bodies…" 

That voice…Tidus?

The screams of the crowd flew through the air. Wakka, Elly, Nick, Jerry, JC and I swam to the surface to inspect the stands. Monsters crept around the stadium. Innocent people tried with all their might to fight of the monsters.

Wakka and I climbed up the ladder and slid down the other side. We were at the cement stands as the monsters crawled through the seats. They were coming from a person who stood at the entrance. On the other side, a larger figure was standing. Scared people fled. Wakka and I prepared to fight.

"Who are you?" I yelled.

"You don't remember?" a deeper voice asked.

"Auron?" Wakka asked.

"Yes."

"Why are you doing this?" I asked them.

"It's simple. You killed all of these monsters. They're just back for revenge," replied Tidus calmly.

As the stadium cleared, Elly, Nick, Jerry, and JC joined us. "What are you doing?" I asked.

"We're here to fight."

"I don't-," I started. Before I could say any more, the four of them stood on the bench in the first row. Elly crossed her arms at her wrists and closed her eyes.

"I call upon you, O holy Posidon, Lord of the Sea! Help me defeat the monsters here infront of me!" she said to the sky. Rain began to fall from the sky. A bright blue light fell from the sky and engulfed Elly's medallion. It seemed to lift off from her chest. The light totally took her whole body, making an aura of bright light. A large sword was in her hands.

"I call upon you, O holy fire god, Lord of all Fire! Give me strength, all great sire!" called JC, putting his hands in the air. The sky went red as a humungous fireball fell to his hands. He put them together and an aura of red went into him. A machina gun was in his hands. 

"I call upon you, O holy Odin, Lord of Thunder! Give me strength to run all these monsters asunder!" said Jerry, putting his hands together at his chest. The sky flashed with bolts of lightning as a horse and man shaped figure came down in a bolt, entering his body and putting a yellow aura around him. Brass knuckles were on his fingers.

"I call upon you, O holy earth god, Lord of the Land! Give me strength to make these creatures into sand! Feel the wrath, they shall, for the-," Nick began.

"Hurry up, Nick!" Elly commanded.

"Sorry… Give me strength!" he said. The sky turned blue again, and a brown figure came down and entered his body, sending a serge of brown all around him. Two one-foot sticks were in his hands.

Suddenly, our hands had weapons in them. I had a large axe and Wakka had a spear.

"Let's go!" Elly commanded. 

Elly, Nick, and I headed for Tidus as Jerry, JC, and Wakka ran to Auron. 

A battle was about to ensue.


	4. Chapter Four

A World I Know

Chapter Four: Room Shuffle

By: Catie Bourgeois

I cut through two of the large demons with my axe. They were shadows of beasts I had beaten, all twice as pissed at me as before. 

"Rikku! Watch out!" Yuna called, shooting one of he machina guns at the monster behind me. 

"Thanks! When did you get here?" I said as she caught up with Elly, Nick, and I. 

"Just now. That's…Tidus?" she asked, hoping that it wasn't.

"I think…he's possessed or something!" Elly yelled, smashing her sword into the large shadow demon that used to be a Behemoth.

Yuna cocked her guns. "Let's stop him before he gets hurt!"

We all ran up to the source of the monsters and began to bash at it.

"Haha! You think you can defeat me? Weaklings."

"Boys! Remember, the holy summoning?" Elly called to her male companions.

"That's right!" replied Nick, stopping his constant beating. "JC, JERRY! GET OVER HERE!"

Suddenly, Jerry and JC showed up next to us. "The holy summoning!"

"Summoning? I thought that that couldn't be used…" began Yuna, watching the four people join in a circle.

"Gods, with your strength let us defeat the dark…join as one!" they chanted.

A large hole appeared in the dense clouds. A white light shot down to them, stealing their light and making a sphere in the center of their circle. It quickly separated and shot into each person's chest.

The four split up and with one hit each, destroyed the darkness around Tidus and Auron. The demons subsided into the sky and the two men tumbled over.

"Tidus!" yelled Yuna, running to her beloved and falling onto his chest, feeling his heartbeat.

"Auron!" a scream was heard from across the stadium. It was Lulu.

As Wakka and I walked down the hall, I saw Yuna standing inches away from Tidus' door. 

"Why don't you go in?" Wakka asked.

I sighed. Men didn't know the first thing about romance and love…especially Wakka.

"Wakkers. She can't go in…Tidus was…" I began.

"No, don't worry about it, Rikku. Wakka. I am scared to. What I saw of him last night was enough to think he'd do it again…" she said, turning the handle to the room. "Anyway, I think he's asleep."

"We were on our way, anyway. See you at lunch, Yunie."

We found ourselves at the end of the hall, looking into Auron's room. Lulu was by his side, her index finger traveling down his scar. The baby was silently sleeping in her arms.

"That's so sweet," I commented quietly, "Don't you think, Wakka?"

"Yeah."

"I wish I had someone like that…someone that would be always by my side, no matter what."

"Maybe you already do, ya?"

"Oh, yeah, like who?" I asked, as we started down the stairs.

"I don't know," he said, looking to the bottom of the stairs. Berrik was there, rapping his fingers on the banister as he spoke to Ranna. 

"You're feeling better, huh, Berrik?" I asked.

"Umm…" he flustered. "No, I still feel horrible! I have to go to the bathroom!" he said. Somehow, that was quite unbelievable. I wondered why he would act sick…so I could get on the team? No, never: that doesn't make sense.

The question was in my mind, still, about the night before's events. We were supposed to talk it over during lunch.

"Yes, he still felt very sick, I should attend to him," Ranna said, walking to the men's room. Why wasn't she with Bakku? Had they broken up?

We made our way to the dining table where Elly, Nick, JC, and Jerry were sitting. They had been invited, and I had forgiven Nick for what he had said. It was clear what Elly had done to him afterwards by the look of his bruised arm.

Wakka and I sat down as the other Aurochs joined us. A half an hour passed and I, as well as everyone else, wondered what the four of them were up to, so Wakka and I went to inspect.

"We're serving lunch, guys, and we don't need to wait for you!" called Elly.

"Right!" I said back. 

We ran up the stairs and into the hallway. The door to Auron's room was shut, so Wakka gave a knock and let them know we were starting without them. No words came, so we thought we should let them do whatever they were doing.

We went to Tidus' room, who's door was opened. Wakka went in first. I peered inside. Yuna was ontop of him, kissing him with all her might. For god's sake, it was their first meeting in more than two years.

"Hey, you two, why don't you put some room between you, ya, and get downstairs?"

They quickly parted. "Sure."

"Nice to see you, Tidus," I said.

"You, too."

"And star player. You coming back to the team?" Wakka asked. First thing in the morning, last thing at night: Blitzball.

"I'm not sure yet. Why don't we all go downstairs, and we'll talk it over," Tidus replied.

"Oh! Wait here, you two! We have something for you!" Yuna said, pushing me inside.

They dashed out and slammed the door, a click heard from outside.

"They didn't just lock us in, did they?" I asked.

"I think they did."

I went to open the door. No. I ran to the window…locked from the other side.

"Why do they always try to get us alone?" I shouted.

"I don't know. Maybe they…oh, never mind."

"What?"

"Maybe there's something they want us to tell each other?"

"Like what?"

"I'm not sure."

"Geez, usually when you say something like that, you should have something to back it up with, you know?" I asked, pounding on the door.

Wakka sat on the bed and stared up at the ceiling.

"Aren't you going to help?" I asked.

"Why does it matter, ya?" 

I grunted. A thought came to my head. I had seen it on a sphere before. Two people were locked in a room, and they took out the pins on the door.

With my fingers, I yanked out the three pins in the door. Wakka came over and pulled the door out.

"Good job!" We ran out of the room and down the stairs to find them. They were at the table, eating their omelets when we arrived. Even Auron and Lulu were there. We decided to make a fuss later.

"Oh, where have _you_ two been?" asked Berrik, shoveling a large piece of toast into his mouth. 

"We were held up," I simply stated, and sat down.

"So we're here to discuss last night's events," announced Auron. It was nice to hear his deep, soothing voice again.

"Exactly what happened to you guys?" asked Elly, taking a sip of her mocha.

"Two years ago, we were sent to the farplane. We made a deal with a man, whom we didn't get the name of. The deal was this: we could go back to Spira. He didn't want anything in return. What he didn't tell us, was that he was turning us to darkness upon our return. I couldn't control a word I said last night. It was like…the man was making me say those things…"

"Anyway, this is where I take over. The four of us are the Quadrad of the Elements," Elly stated.

"The Quadrad?" I asked, unable to believe it.

The Quadrad of Elements was a group of four people in legend that were able to summon the powers of the gods and fuse with them. I had always thought that it was unreal, for summoning wasn't possible these days. 

"What did you do to turn Aurrie and Tidus back?" Lulu asked. I almost laughed. It was the first thing I'd ever heard her say that was just the slight bit childish. Aurrie? Well, I called Yuna Yunie and Wakka Wakkers, so I guess I shouldn't judge.

"When four of the gods fuse to one power, it makes the holy element. When they go against each other, it's the dark element. We knew that holy overpowers darkness, so we thought we'd take a try," Nick explained, brushing the final crumbs of food off of his plate.

"Will they ever turn back to darkness?" Yuna asked.

"Who knows. All we need is to stick together and we'll be fine, right? All we have to do is do the holy summon," said JC. He brushed back his brownish blonde hair with his fingers and yawned.

"Well, what about a rematch, ya?" asked Wakka.

"You're on!" Elly shouted, putting a hand out for Wakka to shake, which he did.

"With him back as our center!" Wakka said, patting Tidus on his shoulder. "Right?"

"Definitely!" Tidus said.

That night, we all got dressed up for the ball that night. It was a celebration that was supposed to be held the night before, but Tidus and Auron held it up, so to speak. 

"What's taking you so long?" I shouted into the door, waiting impatiently for Yuna and Lulu.

"Hold your chocobos, Rik," Wakka's deep voice came from down the hall.

I sighed dramatically. "But Wakkers, I don't wann-" I joked, then saw Wakka's done up features. He was dressed in a tux of black, white, and red. The shirt was white, the cumber bun and tie were red, and the pants and jacket were black. He had shaved his stubbly face and taken his blue bandana out of his hair. From the smell that permeated from his head, I assumed that the only way his wave-like cowlick was staying down was by a huge clump of hair gel.

"Go a little lighter on the gel next time, Wak," I joked. I should have replaced that for a compliment.

"You look nice," he blurted, almost cutting me off. 

I scanned my yellow cocktail dress.

"Thanks," I replied. I felt somewhat embarrassed for ridiculing him.

"Hey, the guys are waiting downstairs, you want to go with me instead of waiting for those girls?"

"Sure."

We began to make our way to the stairs as Lulu and Yuna burst out of the room, make-up and hair perfect, wearing dresses of smooth silk. Lulu's was black and reached to her ankles. Yuna's was the same length but of a purple hew.

"Wait!' Yuna called, dashing down the hall to us. 

"Do you know how hard it is to run in this?" Lulu complained. I really didn't. My dresses never went below my knee. The one I sported was to my knee, this time around, and was of a yellow color, one that clashed with my hair.

"Ready yet?" I joked.

"Yes," Yuna replied.

"Let's go, ladies," Wakka said, starting the line to the stairs.

At the bottom were Auron and Tidus. Auron was in an all black tux and Tidus was in a blue ruffled one that had lapels out to his deltoids.

Tidus gave a wolf whistle. Yuna looked down at him disapprovingly, making him chuckle. She did, too, then walked down the stairs to her beloved. 

Auron approached Lulu with his secretive charm and gentleman-like air and kissed her hand. 

For a minute I wondered who my date was. I glanced around then realized I hadn't asked anyone.

Wakka had the same confused expression on his face.

"Hey, uh…Rik?"

"Yeah, Wak?"

"Could you do me a favor and…be my date for tonight?" he asked.

The chattering Yuna and Tidus went silent. Auron and Lulu looked over. 

"Sure," I replied, trying to figure out why they stared so.

"What?" asked Wakka as they began to grin.

"Oh, nothing," Tidus said.

We all began to walk out of the inn to outside. I overheard a bit of Lulu's and Yuna's conversation.

"See, I told you. We didn't need to stage any of that other stuff. I knew that they would've gotten together on their own," Lulu said.

That's what that was? Berrik getting food poisoning, the Aurochs late for practice, getting locked in the hotel room (Well, dead giveaway), and this? 

I couldn't believe it. Did everyone want us to get together? Did everyone know about this but us?


	5. Chapter Five

A World I Know

Chapter Five: Waltz for the Moon

By: Catie Bourgeois

Music filled our ears as the ballroom doors were opened. Couples dancing and drinking were about the room.

A familiar melody was escaping the strings of the quartet. It was 'Waltz for the Moon' {A/N: FF8!}. Auron and Lulu went straight for the bar, Tidus and Yuna went to the tables to get a bite to eat, and Wakka and I were left standing in the entrance.

"Well, you wanna dance?" I asked.

"Oh…"

"What?"

"Well…I don't know how to dance, ya? I'm great at blitzing, but I can't get a handle at this whole 'dancing' thing, ya?"

"Oh, c'mon! Here, I'll show you."

I grabbed his large hands and pulled him onto the dance floor. I showed him to put one hand on my waist and the other in my right hand. I liked that warmth that he emitted from his body. Nervous, his hands quavered, but I still enjoyed his presence around me. After two steps, he stepped on my toes. As a sign of failure, he tried to break away.

I wouldn't let him. "Here…look- one two three…balance back balance back. You see? In a circle, right?"

Staring at his feet he did the steps.

"Yeah…"

"Great! Now try looking up." We made eye contact.

"One two three," I mouthed. He went along.

I nodded as we progressed and got faster.

"Hey, I'm doing it!" he said. "Here!"

He tried to dip me but lost his balance and fell on me. He began to laugh as he got up. 

"You alright?" he asked, putting out a hand for me to get up with.

I put my hand in his and he yanked up. Now, Wakka is the kinda guy that doesn't know his own strength. I ended up flying towards him and landing in his arms, our lips pressed together. Our frightened and surprised eyes locked as we jumped away from each other.

"That was not-," Wakka began.

"No! No, that wasn't intentional!" I said back. The sound of glass breaking and gasps went about the ball room. The quartet stopped their playing.

The room was suddenly quiet. JC and Elly looked at us, laughing a bit. Jerry and Nick were standing with two girls. When it happened, Jerry must've dropped his wine on one of the girl's dresses, for she was stained all down her front. Cedric's arms were crossed stubbornly as he stood in the corner. The Aurochs were high-fiving each other. 

Now, this was a sign that everyone was rooting for us…or thinking that we'd never get together.

I stormed out of the room, unable to handle the staring and laughing. The cold nipped at my bare skin, but I didn't care, I was thoroughly embarrassed.

"Wait! Rikku!" Wakka's voice called.

"What?" I asked, keeping my pace and watching the pavement.

"That was an accident!" he said.

"It doesn't matter, Wakka! I just…" Tears began to fall from my cheeks as I halted.

"What's the matter?" he asked, walking in front of me. He pushed my lowered chin higher. "Why are you crying?"

"Wakka! We're the laughing stock when people think we're together! I'm so embarrassed! They think that…"

He remained quiet, for once. He didn't bother to say anything until the words escaped his lips: "Do I embarrass you? Because you sure as hell don't embarrass me."

"No, you don't… I just…I love you, alright? I love you and if we were together, then people would laugh at us, and you don't deserve tha…" I started, but was interrupted by Wakka's blue-eyed stare.

"Look at Auron and Lu. You don't see them getting any people laughing at them. Nor Tidus and Yuna. Listen, Rikku. They weren't laughing at us, they were laughing because they thought it would never happen."

"What wouldn't…us getting together?"

"No. Me confessing that I love you."

My jaw almost broke at that moment. I took the initiative and pressed my lips to his again, this time a little less puckered and a little more passionate. 

For once, I was home. It wasn't Spira. It wasn't the Blitzfield. It wasn't even Zanarkand. It was the love of a friend. And that's a world I know.

Epilogue: 

Wakka told me that he preferred me as a Blitzer more than Zalitz, and said that I'd be better as the backbone anyway, and gave me the left-defense spot with the Aurochs. Tidus joined the team that night as our center. Yuma Guado, Bakku, Ranna, and Berrik left the team and were replaced by Nick, Jerry, JC, and Elly. 

As for Bakku and Ranna, well, they split up. Berrik was there for Ranna in her 'time of need' and they (not officially) got together. 

Lulu and Auron had three children in the next four years, and settled down in Besaid. 

Tidus and Yuna spent all their time together, Yuna following Tidus on his Blitz Tours and Yuna learning the ways of the 'Quadrant' from the much obliging Elly and JC. She now knows four different thunder and water summonings. 

Cedric lived a very unhappy life as the star player of the Luca Goers. They now are at the bottom of the Blitz team ratings, next to Kilika Beasts. 

Nick and Jerry found their soul mates nearly three years later and married them. Jerry got a divorce to the wine-spilled-on-lady as Nick has two children with Lacey, a reporter from Luca.

Wakka and I got our blessings from my father and soon after wed. We now go on tour with the Aurochs and live happily in close contact with our friends and comrades.

And that's a world I know, right? 

AN: Yo guys, how'd you like it? Good bad? Maybe okay? Haha alright, well, r/r like always. Let me know if you want me to review your story. I'll definitely read: R/W (Rikku/Wakka) A/L (Auron/Lulu) T/Y (Tidus Yuna) 

NEVER EVER: W/L (Wakka/Lulu)  A/R (Auron/Rikku YUCK!!!!) or any homosexual pieces. Thanks! 

"_Double the stakes, Vickster! I told you that Mandy would be fully clothed! She's not that bad_" Rena Wilson, The Time Saga: Miranda's Story.

Hey that's a sneak peek of my novel! Read! It's cool! Romance, Adventure, Humor…and _fully clothed_? Well, read to find out!


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